Divide. Express your answer as a decimal. $27 \div 5 =$
There are many ways to solve this problem. Let's see two possible solutions. Place value strategy Let's think in terms of tenths: $\begin{aligned} &\phantom{=}27 \div 5&\\\\ &=27.0 \div 5\\\\ &= 270\text{ tenths}\div 5\\\\ &= 54\text{ tenths}\\\\ &= 5.4 \end{aligned}$ Fraction strategy Let's convert the division problem to a fraction with a denominator of $10$. $\begin{aligned} 27 \div 5 &= \dfrac{27}{5}&\gray{\text{Rewrite the division problem as a fraction}}\\\\ &= \dfrac{27 \times 2}{5 \times 2}&\gray{\text{Multiply the top and bottom by 2}}\\\\ &=\dfrac{54}{10}&\\\\ &= 5.4& \end{aligned}$ The answer $27 \div 5 = 5.4$